Results for Category: Botanical
Evergreen Forest Bath Salts Recipe with Juniper and Pine
As we head into the new year, winter has deeply enveloped many parts of the country. Most plants and animals are dormant or hibernating, and the people have wrapped themselves in their thickest wools. (The lucky ones are reading herbals by the fire while sipping spiced cider!) This time of year calls for an extra…
How to Recognize and Manage Hormonal Imbalance
Recognizing and managing hormonal imbalance starts with an understanding of hormones and the impact they have on our bodies. Hormo...
Your Guide to Winter Foraging
Something magical happens in the winter. Our pace slows, the world grows quiet, and we cozy up in our homes with a more inward foc...
Soothing Herbal Sitz Bath for New Mothers
You can blend together botanicals celebrated for their relaxing aromas and cooling astringent properties to create a soothing herbal sitz bath. Both yarrow (Achillea millefolium) aerial parts and St. John’s wort (Hypericum perforatum) flowers have been found to aid mothers recovery from the birthing process. Their anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties soothe the skin and stimulate…
How to Use Mugwort for Dreams, Sleep, and More
When I was camping in the Gifford-Pinchot National Forest as part of my studies at the Elderberry School of Botanical Medicine, I rolled an herbal smoking blend that I made with mugwort (Artemisia sp.) as one of the main ingredients. I shared it with the group while we were sitting around the campfire. That night,…
French Apple Cinnamon Tea
This French Apple Cinnamon Tea recipe calls for cinnamon, apples, and honey, providing a little crispness with a dash of sweetness...
De Materia Medica: The Ancient Text that Changed the World
There is a grand mystery and pleasure in reading ancient texts that can still fulfill our curiosities about the human experience. ...
Health Benefits of Cinnamon + 2 Warming Recipes
(Excerpted from Spice Apothecary by Bevin Clare. Used with permission from Storey Publishing.) Cinnamon is one of the oldest and most well-known spices. There are four commonly available types of cinnamon, and they can be quite different in taste, chemical composition, and herbal action. All come from the inner bark of several Southeast Asian tree…
Using Goldenrod: A Late Summer Cordial Recipe
Goldenrod (Solidago spp.) flourishes abundantly on roadsides and meadows in late summer and fall. In the plant family, Asteraceae, the genus name “Solidago†is derived from the Latin word “solidare†which translates to, “make whole or heal.†This is a helpful clue into the many ways people have been using goldenrod for centuries. Aptly named,…
Queen Anne’s Lace Part II: Traditional Use of Daucus Carota
Queen Anne’s lace (Daucus carota) is a fascinating plant with a long and storied past. Because it has poisonous look-alikes, itâ...
